# Multi-Class Quantum Convolutional Neural Networks

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.12741 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.12741/

## Key facts

- Cited by 3 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 9 of its 26 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 19 Apr 2024.

## Builds on (most cited first, 9 of 9)

- [The power of quantum neural networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2011.00027/) (2020)
- [Generalization in quantum machine learning from few training data](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.05292/) (2021)
- [Challenges and Opportunities in Quantum Machine Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.09491/) (2023)
- [Understanding quantum machine learning also requires rethinking generalization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.13461/) (2023)
- [Retrieval-Enhanced Machine Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.01230/) (2022)
- [Quantum Machine Learning Framework for Virtual Screening in Drug Discovery: a Prospective Quantum Advantage](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2204.04017/) (2022)
- [Multiclass classification using quantum convolutional neural networks with hybrid quantum-classical learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2203.15368/) (2022)
- [A Symmetric Dual Encoding Dense Retrieval Framework for Knowledge-Intensive Visual Question Answering](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2304.13649/) (2023)
- [QUILT: Effective Multi-Class Classification on Quantum Computers Using an Ensemble of Diverse Quantum Classifiers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.15056/) (2023)

## Built on by (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [Single-Qudit Quantum Neural Networks for Multiclass Classification](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.09269/) (2025)
- [Leveraging Quantum-Based Architectures for Robust Diagnostics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2511.12386/) (2025)
- [Layer-wise QUBO-Based Training of CNN Classifiers for Quantum Annealing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.02958/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Classification is particularly relevant to Information Retrieval, as it is used in various subtasks of the search pipeline. In this work, we propose a quantum convolutional neural network (QCNN) for multi-class classification of classical data. The model is implemented using PennyLane. The optimization process is conducted by minimizing the cross-entropy loss through parameterized quantum circuit optimization. The QCNN is tested on the MNIST dataset with 4, 6, 8 and 10 classes. The results show that with 4 classes, the performance is slightly lower compared to the classical CNN, while with a higher number of classes, the QCNN outperforms the classical neural network.